WALKS AND TALKS WITH TOLSTOI -MARCH, 1894 83 



the writings of Felix Adler. I then asked who, in the 

 whole range of American literature, he thought the fore 

 most. To this he made an answer which amazed me, as 

 it would have astonished my countrymen. Indeed, did the 

 eternal salvation of all our eighty millions depend upon 

 some one of them guessing the person he named, we 

 should all go to perdition together. That greatest of 

 American writers was Adin Ballou ! Evidently, some of 

 the philanthropic writings of that excellent Massachusetts 

 country clergyman and religious communist had pleased 

 him, and hence came the answer. 



The next day he came over to my hotel and we went out 

 for a stroll. As we passed along the streets I noticed 

 especially what I had remarked during our previous 

 walks, that Tolstoi had a large quantity of small Rus 

 sian coins in his pockets; that this was evidently 

 known to the swarms of beggars who infest the Kremlin 

 and the public places generally ; and that he always gave 

 to them. 



On my speaking of this, he said he thought that any 

 one, when asked for money, ought to give it. Arguing 

 against this doctrine, I said that in the United States there 

 are virtually no beggars, and I might have gone on to 

 discuss the subject from the politico-economical point of 

 view, showing how such indiscriminate almsgiving in per 

 petual driblets is sure to create the absurd and immoral 

 system which one sees throughout Russia, hordes of 

 men and women who are able to take care of themselves, 

 and who ought to be far above beggary, cringing and 

 whining to the passers-by for alms; but I had come to 

 know the man well enough to feel sure that a politico- 

 economical argument would slide off him like water from 

 a duck s back, so I attempted to take him upon another 

 side, and said: &quot;In the United States there are virtually 

 no beggars, though my countrymen are, I really believe, 

 among the most charitable in the world. &quot; To this last 

 statement he assented, referring in a general way to our 

 shipments of provisions to aid the famine-stricken in Rus- 



